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November 2022
Yoga Newsletter
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November Practices - Soothe & Stabilize
November 9 - December 2
('live' online via Zoom or by recording)
Thank you for reading this month's newsletter! I enjoy receiving your comments and questions. Often they become themes for future newsletters and practices.
Read on for upcoming online and in-person practices and special topics. Begin your New Year by joining the in-person January retreat on Whidbey Island! Ayurveda daily routine will provide support for you to attune to nature's qualities or rhythms within yourself. We'll explore how lifestyle choices play a role in limiting or facilitating well-being and are best individually tailored. Our practices will be warming, stimulating, and uplifting, to counter the cold, cloudy, damp and heavy qualities of winter season. Take advantage of Early Bird Retreat Pricing until October 31!
The special topics in the newsletters are intended as resources! All of the recipes, asanas, breathing and meditation practices in the newsletter can be found in the blog on my website https://wendydion.com/. Use the'search' tool on the right hand side of any page on the website.
November Practices: November 9-December 2 ('live' online via Zoom or by recording)
Chair, Wednesdays, 10:30-11:45am, Pacific Time
Centering, Fridays, 9:00-10:15am, Pacific Time
You may join a practice anytime! The last two months we have focused on asanas, breathing, and meditation that stabilize, soothe, and settle the energy in the base of the body - the feet, legs, and lower pelvic/sacral region. These practices adress the dry, cold, rough, and moving qualities of the autumn or vata season and are intended to hydrate the tissues, rekindle warmth and digestion, and calm anxiety and agitation.
November practices will include further exploration of the breath and the profound relationship between the intake of the breath (prana vayu) and the exhalation, the downward and outward flow of energy (apana vayu). Richard Freeman describes this relationship beautifully:
"There is a moment when the tree of the breath comes to full bloom at the top of the inhale, and then all of a sudden everything changes and the apanic pattern takes over. There is a gradual releasing of the breath, and the expansive sensations associated with prana are replaced by feelings of drawing in to the core of the body, dropping, stability, and of being grounded as the exhale squeezes down and roots into the base of the pelvic floor, tethering body and mind to the earth . . . .
"The underlying process of hatha yoga is to explore deeply this relationship of the inhale and the exhale: to discover the root of apana in the prana, and the expansion of prana in the apana . . . and how the intertwining and the interplay of these two breathing patterns affect the entire structure of the body and mind." ~Richard Freeman
In This Newsletter:
- Balasana - Child's Pose - A quintessential asana to stabilize and soothe your whole being.
- Roasted Vegetables Recipe - Warm, sweet, earthy qualities ease digestion for nutrition during the autumn season.
Abundant Blessings,
Wendy
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Join November
Centering or Chair Practices
'live' via Zoom or by recording:
- Pay what you are able for 4-weeks or drop-in.
- Your payment is your registration.
- You will receive a confirmation.
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Register for
Attune to Nature's Rhythms
Nourish Your Well-Being
In-Person Retreat
January 20-22, 2023
Friday, 2pm - Sunday, 2pm, PT
Aldermarsh, S. Whidbey Island, WA
- Early Bird Pricing until October 31!
- Secure your place soon! Retreat size is limited.
- All are welcome! Experience with the practices is encouraged.
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Schedule a therapeutic
One-on-One Session
Learn more & Contact me:
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photo: YogaUonline.com
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Balasana - Child's Pose
Balasana is a quintessential asana to stabilize and soothe your whole being. The entire front of the body including the head is supported, providing spaciousness to the back of the lungs, and expansion of the back ribs. The gaze of the eyes and focus of attention is turned inward toward the mind's source and childlike joy.
The deepening of the breath and slowing down of brain functions enhances the parasympathetic nervous system, which is responsible for deepening our capacity to rest and digest.
Practice Steps:
- Begin on all fours in Table on a stable and soft surface - use a blanket on your mat or mat on a rug.
- Allow your breath to flow as you exhale down into your hands and guide your hips and belly back.
- By pressing down into your hands, elongate your spine, and tissues around your torso, before releasing your torso on or between your legs.
- Your body should feel comfortable and able to relax. If not, explore the variations below or engage help from a teacher.
- Close your eyes and let your face relax.
- Allow your breath to dome your back body, widening your shoulders, back ribs, waistline, and sacral area.
- Imagine and sense releasing tension from the midline of your back horizontally and down along the sides of your body from hips to crown.
- Progressively lengthen your time in the asana from two to eight minutes, with ease.
Variations
If you are not comfortable, experiment with variations:
- Take your knees and/or hands wider.
- Place a folded blanket or bolster support between your buttocks and heels.
- Support your forehead with stacked hands or folded blanket.
- Raise and support your entire torso on a bolster, bolster angled with a block, or on the seat of a padded chair.
Contraindications:
Need more support? Contact me. Adjusting the asanas and practices to your needs and constitution is one of the many benefits of working together in one-on-one sessions.
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Roasted Vegetables
Roasted vegetables are one of my favorite autumn meal choices. They serve as a good transition from raw summer salads that aggravate vata dominant constitution during autumn, a vata dominant season. (Vata dosha is cold, dry, and light.) Warm temperature, hydrating oil, and the sweet taste of these vegetables, provide opposite qualities to that of Vata dosa. These warm, sweet, earthy qualities ease digestion for good nutrition, and provide stability and soothing qualities during the autumn season.
Roasted vegetables are varied and versatile! In addition to beets, and carrots, add winter squash and sweet potatoes too. They can be served over rice, grains such as millet or quinoa, and used in wraps with tahini, hummus, nut, goat/sheep, or dairy cheeses such as feta, or in a sandwich with sourdough bread.
Roasted Vegetables
serves 6
INGREDIENTS:
- 1 1/2 cups carrots, peeled and cut into 1" pieces
- 1 1/2 cups beets (assorted colors), peeled and cut in 3/4" pieces
- 1 1/2 cups sweet potatoes*, peeled and cut into 1" pieces
- 1 1/2 cups delicata squash*, skin on, cut into 1" pieces
- 1/2 cup onion peeled and cut into 1/2" wedges (substitute shallots, leeks, garlic)
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1/2-1 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
* For kapha dominant constitution use regular potatoes and summer squash.
INSTRUCTIONS:
Beets take longer to roast and will bleed. Make sure they are cut in smaller pieces and roast on a separate sheet pan, if bleeding is bothersome.
- Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
- Place the veggies in a bowl and toss with the olive oil, salt, pepper and herbs (see herb qualities below).
- Place the veggies on a parchment lined sheet pan(s). Bake 30 minutes or until tender and caramelized.
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